(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to undersea vehicles, and more particularly to a system for integrating an autonomous, unmanned undersea platform vehicle with a submarine's hull, conformal acoustic arrays and weapons systems.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
To meet increasing budgetary constraints while increasing operational capabilities of planned submarines, the use of autonomous platforms, launched from the submarine and capable of extended mission execution without tethered communication with the submarine, is being pursued. Such platforms would be unmanned, undersea vehicles (UUV's) having extensive sensor, communications and weapons capabilities and would be controlled through advanced autonomous data processing contained within the platform. While such a platform could be carried as an appendage to the submarine and launched by simply detaching from its mounting point, the integration of the platform with an advanced submarine presents a unique set of problems which need to be addressed. Advanced submarines contemplate a hydrodynamically shaped bow structure and sail to minimize drag. Appending an autonomous platform to this streamlined shape would defeat the hydrodynamic shaping. Additionally, the advanced submarine replaces the large spherical array of present submarines with large area conformal arrays, i.e., arrays which conform to the shape of the submarine while providing narrower acoustic beams and better noise rejection. Again, appending a platform to such a submarine would significantly decrease conformal array performance. Further, the space freed from the use of conformal arrays in advanced submarines versus the spherical array of traditional submarines allows weapons systems in advanced submarines to be more forward deployed. Any attachment of a platform to such an advanced submarine requires the integration of these components. Still further, the launch of the UUV must be acoustically quiet such that the location of the submarine is not revealed to hostile forces. Finally, the integration of the UUV with the submarine must be designed such that neither the submarine's hydrodynamic noise signature nor its acoustic target strength signature are raised following launch of the UUV from the submarine.
Current submarines do not typically employ or deploy UUV's, hence there are no known systems or methods for hydrodynamically attaching a UUV to a submarine. Similarly, UUV's carried aboard surface ships are normally deck mounted and lowered over the side such that hydrodynamically attaching the UUV to the ship is not a consideration. The prior art does teach the attachment of escape pods or compartments to submarines such that the attached pods or compartments conform with the outer hull of the submarine. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,107,641 to Haynes discloses an escape compartment which forms part of the deck structure of the submarine when attached to the submarine. However, the Haynes compartment and other similar escape pods do not provide the conformal array and weapons systems needed for the compartment or pod to serve as an adjunct to the submarine, nor do they provide for integrating such systems with those of the submarine. Further, the Haynes compartment utilizes explosives to launch the compartment from the submarine, quickly revealing the submarine's presence to a hostile force.